Abstract
The behavioral preference for the use of one side of the body starts from pre-natal life and prompt humans to develop motor asymmetries. The type of motor task completed influences those functional asymmetries. However, there is no real consensus on the occurrence of handedness during developmental ages. Therefore, we aimed to determine which motor asymmetries emerged differently during childhood. A total sample of 381 children in grades 1 to 5 (6–11 years old) of primary school were recruited and tested for two fine coordination tasks (Floppy, led by dexterity, and Thumb, led by speed-dominated skills) and handgrip strength (HS). Data about their handedness, footedness and sports participation were also collected. Children performed better with their dominant side, especially for the Floppy and HS tests. The asymmetries were more marked in right-handed children and did not differ by age, gender or type of sport. Our findings support the thesis of a functional lateralization in complex coordinative tasks and in maximal strength during developmental ages. Furthermore, our findings extend the evidence of a stronger lateralization in right-handed individuals, demonstrating it at a functional level in primary school children performing motor tasks. Fine motor skills allow a “fine” understanding of developmental trajectories of lateralized behavior.
Highlights
Besides the apparent physical symmetry, many species including humans are greatly asymmetric, both at a structural and functional level [1,2]
We hypothesized that motor asymmetries emerged differently with respect to the type of all, the results of the present study showed that the prevalence of left-handers (10.9%) in children from manual task, led by strength, dexterity or speed-dominated skills [35], in primary school-aged
This work dealt with the lateralization of motor functions in developmental ages, showing that functional asymmetries are more prominent in a complex, rather than simple, task of fine motor skills
Summary
Besides the apparent physical symmetry, many species including humans are greatly asymmetric, both at a structural and functional level [1,2]. The most evident functional asymmetry in the nervous system concerns handedness, and it corresponds to the preference for the use of the right rather than left side of the body (mainly hand and foot), which is present in almost 90% of the overall population (for a review, see [3]) This population-level asymmetry seems to be mostly independent of demographic features, such as gender and ethnicity, and it has been found to be present even in pre-natal life [4,5,6]. The evidence according to which older adults reveal a stronger laterality preference compared to younger adults [8] confirms that handedness develops—or, at least, becomes increasingly more stable—in post-natal life, and remains consistent during adulthood [9] The centrality of this topic in the physical, physiological and neuropsychological frame is well defined considering the amount of standardized and “home-made” tests available for investigating handedness [10]. The majority of these measures are based on self-report assessments
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